Technical Support and Training Officer

New Delhi

Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
Location: New Delhi
Grade: Consultancy - SB-3 (SC6/SC7), Service Contract, Local Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Poverty Reduction
- Education, Learning and Training
- Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction
- Malaria, Tuberculosis and other infectious diseases
Closing Date: Closed

Background

Indian producers face several challenges to secure their household’s income, food provision while making an important economic contribution for the country. And one reason for the rising farm distress is crop failures and yield losses triggered by the vagaries of climate. The livelihood of a large proportion of India’s population—as the largest private enterprise with ~138 million farm families with an 18% contribution to national GDP—is at risk. Any shock on agricultural production already has social and financial repercussions for both the population and the country as a whole; it impacts rural income levels, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and, in the worst years, poverty rates.

The Government of India’s flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), compensates farmers for any crop losses. The scheme insures farmers against a wide range of external risks — droughts, dry spells, floods, inundation, pests and diseases, landslides, natural fire and lightning, hailstorms, cyclones, typhoons, tempests, hurricanes and tornadoes. While the idea of insuring farmers against crop losses isn’t new, the PMFBY is an attempt to plug the gaps in the previous crop insurance schemes — the National Agriculture Insurance scheme (NAIS) introduced in 1999 and the Modified NAIS (mNAIS) introduced in 2011.

The scheme came into operation from 1 April 2016 with a Central government budget allocation of Rs 5,500 crore for 2016–17. Further, the Central government plans to bring 40 per cent of agricultural area under PMFBY in 2017–18 and, accordingly, a provision of about Rs 9,000 crore has been made in the 2017–18 budget.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana promotes sustainable agriculture production through – i) financial support to farmers against crop losses due to climactic or external shocks ii) securing incomes iii) improved, modern and innovative farming practices for better yield iv) enhancing credit availability in the agricultural sector.

The Country Programme Document (2018-2022) of United Nations Development Program’s (UNDP) approved by the Government of India has defined one of its foremost programme priorities and outcomes as “Institutional and systems strengthening for service delivery” as the single most innovations to achieve last mile developmental impact. UNDP will leverage its expertise in systems strengthening to support the Ministry of Agriculture to set up a Technical Support Unit for the implementation of PMFBY, to improve institutional and programme responsiveness, increase coverage and better access among the marginalised and excluded farm households offering innovative measures for risk management and reduced crop loss for the rural population in India. The TSU will strongly focus on providing Capacity Building and Training support to the participating state-level government departments involved in PMFBY and advancing the scheme among new states for improved uptake.

Under this partnership, UNDP wishes to hire the services of Technical Support & Training Officers to perform the duties below.

Duties and Responsibilities

As the Technical Support & Training officers, the persons will be responsible for supporting the Capacity Building Specialist in preparing educational and training material for government and implementing agencies for better uptake of the PMFBY scheme. The Technical Support & Training officers will collaborate closely with project associate UNDP, the project admin focal point for all requisite submissions to be made to UNDP on a regular basis.

The Technical Support & Training officers will be based at New Delhi (with extensive travel to the States/Field) and shall work under the guidance and supervision of the Capacity Building Specialist – Agriculture Methods and Extension. The Technical Support & Training officers is responsible working closely with other consultants will undertake the following responsibilities: -

I.Technical and Implementation Support Services and Training for State TSUs

(i)Support for preparing the annual state level crop insurance plan and premium subsidy budget;

(ii)Support for seasonal and annual bidding process with the authorized insurers. Training in understanding crop actuarial and rating and product design, sums insured and coverage levels;

(iii)Technical support in all aspects of crop insurance program design and major focus on state level implementation (including strengthening of CCE's, accounting of premium subsidies and timely settlement, farmers education and training programs, M&E);

(iv)Undertake extensive visit to State offices to provide both implementation and monitoring support to State Government for effective implementation of PMFBY;

(v)Assist National PMU/TSU & States with developing targeted knowledge products & materials and best practice documentations;

(vi)Support the Capacity Building in identifying the capacity needs of key stakeholders who will be involved in implementing PMFBY;

(vii)Support in developing manuals and training materials for delivery, marketing, administration, and monitoring of PMFBY, working closely with the project design team;

(viii)Facilitate and organise training programmes and workshops to disseminate the information on PMFBY;

(ix)With the Senior Insurance Specialist - Product R&D specialist, support training the staff of insurance companies and other implementing partners using the manuals developed and conduct awareness seminars for potential farmer clients;

(x)Make logistical arrangements for conducting the baseline survey and collecting information and data related to major crops and weather risks and Knowledge Attitude Practices Surveys (KAP);

(xi)Identify key personnel and develop partnerships with local implementing agencies;

(xii)Assist during the delivery of educational training to farmers and other beneficiaries;

(xiii)Gather feedback related to PMFBY products from the farmers and other implementing partners to help refine the services and implementation;

(xiv)Assist in preparing periodic reports related to the implementation and progress of the project and flag any risks to the PMU;

(xv)Assist the Head - TSU cum monitoring and evaluation specialist in overseeing project implementation and the functioning of the implementing partners, especially adherence to enrolment guidelines, claim settlement at the state level, etc.;

II.Liaison

(xvi)Liaise with UNDP, Ministry of Agriculture, relevant government agencies and all project partners, including donor organizations and NGOs for effective coordination of all project inputs;

(xvii)Provide technical backstopping for inputs for training activities supported by the Project;

(xviii)Provide timely inputs for the timely submission of all progress reports as may be required by UNDP, the Ministry of Agriculture;

(xix)Foster partnerships with key national and state government departments, private insurance companies, farmers organsations and relevant technical institutions working on agriculture insurance and related issues.

(xx)Support the Head – TSU for successful achievement of the project objectives;

III.Other tasks

(xxi)Carry out any other task assigned by the PMU or the Capacity Building Specialist, Agricultural insurance specialist and monitoring and evaluation specialist.

Competencies

Core Competencies

•Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;

•Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of the organisation

Functional Competencies:

Job Knowledge/ Technical skills

•Sound Technical Knowledge in providing implementation support and capacity building of state departments or agencies;

•Experience in delivering training and awareness programmes

•Broad based knowledge current rural insurance and finance, outreach to insurers and implementing agencies, farmers;

•Demonstrates substantive and technical knowledge to meet responsibilities and requirements of the post with excellence;

•Possesses the capacity for strategic planning, result – based management and reporting;

Communication Skills

•Good facilitation and communication skills

•Ability to carry out research and communicate strategic pieces that guide decisions on strategic programme directions

•Tailors and presents information to diverse audiences using a variety of communication delivery methods (e.g., written, electronic, oral, interpersonal) Documentation

•Good interpersonal skills and ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and working relations with people in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity;

Management skills

•Demonstrated skills in building, mobilizing, and connecting with a wide range of stakeholders – insurance agencies, farmer organisations, state agencies etc.,

•Hands-on experience in design, formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

•Ability to lead consultative meetings at national and state level with partners and senior stakeholders to identify priorities and manage the timely delivery of project activities.

•Reliable in delivering own parts of the work as part of a team effort

•Demonstrates excellent work/project planning skills;

•Is open to change and ability to manage complex, ever-changing environments;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Essential: Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture or Economics or Business Management Studies or related field.

Desirable: Master’s degree in Agriculture or Economics or Business Management Studies or equivalent from a reputed university;

Experience:

Essential

•At least 4−5 years of experience in implementing developmental projects related to agricultural technological adoption, agricultural finance, or insurance;

•Demonstrable experience of working closely with the State Governments in implementing large government schemes or programmes;

•Ability to the design and implementation of financial literacy and crop insurance awareness/education and training programs for resource poor farmers

•Relevant Experience at the national level working with Governments and private entities in the insurance sector

Desirable

•At least three to four years of experience in the insurance business with capacity in implementing training and seminars.

•Experience of working with Central and/or State Governments/ international agencies/ on similar assignments will be preferred.

•Prior experience of technical advisory services in the insurance sector

Language Requirements:

•Excellent oral and writing skills in English and Hindi

Remuneration package is INR 98,492/- per month (taxable). UNDP also offers additional benefits which includes medical insurance coverage and limited pension reimbursement for the contract holder and encourages work life balance.

Disclaimer

Important applicant information

All posts in the SC categories are subject to local recruitment.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Workforce diversity

UNDP is committed to achieving diversity within its workforce, and encourages all qualified applicants, irrespective of gender, nationality, disabilities, sexual orientation, culture, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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